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Top Stories: Judge Rules Against Texas Voter ID Law; Who Triggered Dallas' Emergency Sirens?

Erik Hersman
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Flickr

The top local stories this evening from KERA News:

The strict voter ID law that Texas passed six years ago took another body blow today. A federal judge ruled for a second time that the law was intentionally crafted to discriminate against minorities.

The lawsuit that led to the decision was “Veasey vs. Abbott.” That’s Fort Worth Democrat Marc Veasey, before he became a Congressman, and then-Attorney General Greg Abbott, before he became governor.

Other stories this evening:

  • Dallas city officials are still trying to get to the bottom of who triggered the emergency siren system over the weekend. City Council members got an update today.

  • A legislative committee is expected to send a bill to the full Texas House this week that aims to bolster the troubled Dallas Police and Fire Pension system. The committee’s chair is Dan Flynn, a Republican from the town of Van, an hour east of Dallas.

  • The hottest debate in Austin may be the one surrounding Senate Bill 6. The so-called bathroom bill would make it illegal for people to use restrooms or locker rooms in schools and other government buildings that don’t match the gender on their birth certificates. Opponents say it’s discriminatory. Supporters like Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick make an argument about public safety. This got one of our listeners wondering: Is there evidence that Senate Bill 6 would keep Texans safe? As part of our statewide Texas Decides series, KERA’s Christopher Connelly decided to check it out.

 You can listen to North Texas stories weekdays at 8:22 a.m. and 6:20 p.m. on KERA 90.1 FM.

Eric Aasen is KERA’s managing editor. He helps lead the station's news department, including radio and digital reporters, producers and newscasters. He also oversees keranews.org, the station’s news website, and manages the station's digital news projects. He reports and writes stories for the website and contributes pieces to KERA radio. He's discussed breaking news live on various public radio programs, including The Takeaway, Here & Now and Texas Standard, as well as radio and TV programs in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.